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Jamie Carragher has said that his former club Liverpool are favourites to win the Premier League title this season if they sign another centre-back in January. The Reds are suffering from an injury crisis at the moment with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez expected to miss the majority of the season.
The Reds have made a solid start to their Premier League title defence, winning five, drawing 2 and losing one of their opening 8 fixtures. They currently sit in 3rd place in the Premier League table.
However, injuries have decimated their squad in recent weeks with Joel Matip the only fit senior centre-back at the moment. While 19-year-old Rhys Williams and Nat Phillips have filled in admirably, a lack of an experienced centre-back could hurt Liverpool's chances at the business end of the season.
Speaking to Punching.TV, Carragher said:
“I think if Liverpool buy a centre-back, a good one, in January, I think they'll take some stopping, I really do. Defensively, they have injury problems in that position (centre-back), and if they rectify that in January, I think Liverpool would be my favourites," said Carragher.
“But right now, I think it's 50/50 between them and Man City because of Liverpool's injuries and the setback of van Dijk," added Carragher.
Liverpool and Manchester City could face a tougher challenge in the Premier League this season: Jamie Carragher
Liverpool and Manchester City have dominated the last two seasons in the Premier League and have clearly been a cut above the rest. However, Carragher expects this season to be much more closely contested.
“I just don't think there will be as big a gap between them (Liverpool and City) and the rest as we've seen in the last couple of years," said Carragher.
With a lot of Liverpool players getting injured in the last few days, the squad will be pushed to its limits when they take on table-toppers Leicester City after the current international break.
Manchester City also have a tough fixture as they face second-placed Tottenham Hotspurs away from home on the 21st of November. With both sides expected to go deep in the Champions League as well, Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola will be hoping that there are no more injuries to contend with in the coming weeks.
With an intense schedule to keep up with and no proper breaks for players, this Premier League season could go right down to the wire.
